Customer Service & Help Desk for Electronic Health Records (EHR)

EHR / EMR Help Desk Support Checklist & Industry Resource Listing

Does your health delivery system have the resources to support provider staff at the point of care for HCIT deployments?

Are there resources in place (champions in place, peer coaches, trainers, technical staff, workflow templates and IT help desks) to ensure that there are not dramatic interruptions in workflow productivity and patient care?

Are the workflows of your provider practises or operational processes documented and optimized?

How will these workflows work or not work with your EMR/EHR deployments?

Have you captured your findings and learning for training education purposes?

Does your help desk and knowledge content systems assist with provider system training, questions on workflow?

Does your health delivery system have a dedicated help desk function to support effective business office and physician practise adoption of your EMR/EHR investment?

The American Health Information Management Association is the community of professionals engaged in health information management, providing support to members and strengthening the industry and profession. AHIMA supports the common goal of applying modern technology to and advancing best practises in health information management.

The AMA's mission is to maintain high standards of medical education, provide scientific information to medical professionals and health-related information to the public, and develop programs to advance the practise of medicine and to serve the health needs of the public.

The American Medical Informatics Association is a nonprofit membership organization of individuals, institutions, and corporations dedicated to developing and using information technologies to improve health care.

ANSI is a voluntary organization composed of over 1,300 members (including all the large computer companies) that creates standards for the computer industry. In addition to programming languages, ANSI sets standards for a wide range of technical areas, from electrical specifications to communications protocols.

The College of American Pathologists, the principal organization of board-certified pathologists, serves and represents the interest of patients, pathologists, and the public by fostering excellence in the practise of pathology and laboratory medicine.

Their mission is to serve the professional needs of healthcare Chief Information Officers; and to advance the strategic application of information technology in innovative ways aimed at improving the effectiveness of healthcare delivery.

A nationally recognized EHR education program endorsed by state medical associations and community hospitals. More than 17 states currently participate. Seminars, webinars, and toolkits are provided. Topics range from: EHR Stimulus Act funding – how to apply for reimbursements, to EHR selection + negotiation, and implementation best practises. Standard program fees are waived for medical association members enrolled in the program.

The eHealth Initiative and the Foundation for eHealth Initiative are independent, non-profit affiliated organizations whose missions are the same: to drive improvement in the quality, safety, and efficiency of healthcare through information and information technology.

The FDA is responsible for protecting the public health by assuring the safety, efficacy, and security of human and veterinary drugs, biological products, medical devices, our nation's food supply, cosmetics, and products that emit radiation.

This requires the Department of Health and Human Services to establish national standards for electronic health care transactions and national identifiers for providers, health plans, and employers. It also addresses the security and privacy of health data.

This is a nonprofit organization for science-based advice on matters of biomedical science, medicine, and health. The Institute provides a vital service by working outside the framework of government to ensure scientifically informed analysis and independent guidance.

ISO (International Organization for Standardization) is the world's largest developer of standards. ISO has defined a number of important computer standards, the most significant of which is perhaps OSI (Open Systems Interconnection), a standardized architecture for designing networks. ISO is a network of the national standards institutes of 148 countries, on the basis of one member per country, with a Central Secretariat in Geneva, Switzerland, that coordinates the system.

An independent, not-for-profit organization, the Joint Commission is the nation's predominant standards-setting and accrediting body in health care. Since 1951, the Joint Commission has maintained state-of-the-art standards that focus on improving the quality and safety of care provided by health care organizations.

NCPDP creates and promotes standards for the transfer of data to and from the pharmacy services sector of the healthcare industry. NCPDP also offers its members resources, including educational opportunities and database services, to better manage their businesses.

They are a private, not-for-profit organization dedicated to improving health care quality. The organization is frequently referred to as a watchdog for the managed care industry, but NCQA also recognizes individual doctors and medical groups.

NIH is the steward of medical and behavioral research for the Nation. Its mission is science in pursuit of fundamental knowledge about the nature and behavior of living systems and the application of that knowledge to extend healthy life and reduce the burdens of illness and disability.

The National Library of Medicine (NLM) is the world's largest medical library. The Library collects materials and provides information and research services in all areas of biomedicine and health care.

SNOMED International advances excellence in patient care through the delivery of a dynamic and sustainable, scientifically validated terminology and infrastructure that enables clinicians, researchers and patients to share health care knowledge worldwide, across clinical specialties and sites of care.